{
  "id": 7495056,
  "title": "Clay secures $115 million at $7.1 billion valuation",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/15/clay-secures-115-million-at-7-1-billion-valuation",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-15T05:22:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Arabian Post",
    "slug": "arabian-post",
    "url": "https://thearabianpost.com/clay-secures-115-million-at-7-1-billion-valuation/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "New York-based software firm Clay has secured $115 million in a Series D funding round, led by Wellington Management, propelling its valuation to an impressive $7.1 billion. The investment, announced on September 9, attracted participation from notable venture capital firms including Sequoia Capital, StepStone Group, Andreessen Horowitz’s Perennial fund, Meritech Capital, DST Global, CapitalG, BoxGroup, Boldstart, Bloomberg Beta and Evolution. The additional capital will be utilized for expanding Clay’s AI-driven platform and targeting larger corporate clients. Clay, co-founded by Kareem Amin, an entrepreneur originally from Egypt, serves as the company’s chief executive. The company was founded in New York in 2017, initially developing flexible workflow and data tools before shifting focus to software that assists revenue teams in prospect research, data consolidation, and personalized outreach automation. The latest funding round values Clay $2.1 billion higher than the level attached to an employee tender offer at the beginning of 2026 and more than double the valuation from its previous primary financing round in 2025. Wellington Management’s involvement brings in an asset manager recognized for supporting private technology companies in their later growth stages. Since its inception, Clay has grown exponentially, serving over 17,000 customers and doubling its revenue in 2025, with annual recurring revenue expected to reach around $200 million during the current quarter, potentially reaching $240 million by the end of the fiscal year. Amin envisions Clay as the infrastructure companies will rely on to construct and automate growth systems as AI transforms sales team operations. The platform integrates business data, workflow automation, and AI agents that can research companies, enhance contact details, and trigger personalized actions without requiring users to develop conventional software. Clay has attracted customers such as Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, Stripe, ElevenLabs, Workday, and Siemens, with 80% of Forbes’ AI 50 list companies utilizing its products. Specific customers employ Clay for targeted tasks, such as Anthropic using the software to automate research for self-service sign-ups, while Google Cloud leverages Clay to support outbound sales activities. DoorDash is testing an agent designed to identify potential prospects for its workplace lunch program. As venture investors continue to pour substantial funds into software businesses poised to benefit from enterprise spending on generative AI, Clay stands out by focusing on applying AI to go-to-market operations, where businesses seek measurable productivity gains from automation. Wellington’s Rob Mazzoni highlighted the opportunity as extending beyond traditional sales software, noting that the company is managed with financial discipline and operating systems expected of a business that could eventually go public, while continuing to prioritize product expansion and customer growth.",
  "summary": "Arabian Post Staff -Dubai New York-based software company Clay has raised $115 million in a Series D funding round led by Wellington Management, lifting its valuation to $7.1 billion as demand grows for artificial intelligence tools used by sales and marketing teams. The financing, announced on September 9, included participation from Sequoia Capital, StepStone Group, Andreessen Horowitz’s…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}